Sharon Bechor, owner of Rock and Soul

Sharon Bechor and I am the store owner. Rock and Soul is a family owned business started by my parents in the 70s. When all the megastores gave up on records, Rock and Soul still catered to its clientele who bought vinyl. Then it became known as one of the only stores in the NYC that even carry vinyl!

In which city are you located?

New York City

What musical styles do you specialize in?

We do a lot of Funk, Soul, Hip Hop, Rock, and Dance. I guess all genres, but we are known in the hip-hop culture because the actual artists come here to pick up the records that they are making beats over. For instance, QTip, DJ Premier, DJ Khaled, Mark Ronson, Grandmaster Flash, Kool Herc all frequent here.

Can you give a small tour of the music scene in your town?

It's NYC. The city that never sleeps! Everything goes in this town!

What's it like working in a record shop?

You get a lot of characters in here for sure, especially because it's NYC. But it's people that have such a love of music. I swear, this could be a great place for a reality show.

What mind-blowing album are you listing right now?

I've been loving the Meters self-titled album lately.

What does it take for an indie record shop to survive?

It's not easy. Everything is going against indie stores. People don't shop in stores anymore. You have to be willing to evolve.

What does Record Store Day, mean to you and your business?

I love what it does, by making people excited about buying vinyl. By keeping the industry interesting. It makes people shop in actual record stores which is amazing. But the record companies don't make it easy for us independent stores. They make us order in advance, and they won't accept returns if we cannot sell it. So it's stressful because it's a lot of pressure on small record stores.

Tips for musicians launching an album?

Go into record stores, and leave records on consignment. You never know who may hear it. The Wu-Tang Clan started out by leaving their records on consignment in our record store. We played the record and everyone who heard it would buy it. And then they blew up. You never know.

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NY [NYC] city guide X Sharon Bechor

Unfortunately, these small independents are few and far between in NYC because of high rent. Hoping that changes soon. All we see here lately are chain stores coming in while independent cafes, restaurants, stores go out.